View full sizeAlabama wide receiver Christion Jones (22) participates in a drill with the defensive backs during a recent spring practice. (AL.com/Vasha Hunt)

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Perhaps the most interesting story of the spring at Alabama has revolved around Christion Jones, who has been involved in two positions.

He’s been rotating between offense and defense.

Is the former two-way standout at Minor High School a wide receiver who also is playing cornerback, or is he a cornerback who also is playing wide receiver?

“Both ways,” he said after practice Tuesday. “That's how I like to say it.”

Which way will he go Saturday when spring drills end with the annual A-Day Game?

“I'll probably be playing both of them,” Jones said.

Could he keep that up this fall?

“Hopefully,” Jones said.

In his first two seasons at Alabama, Jones played at wide receiver and also returned punts and kickoffs. He has 30 career catches for 417 yards and four touchdowns. That includes 27 catches for 368 yards and four touchdowns last season.

On Saturday, Jones warmed up with the defensive backs before a scrimmage, but he went on to catch five passes for 72 yards and one touchdown.

Jones was asked who would win if he lined up against himself. He dodged the question the way he dodges defensive backs when running a pass route.

“If I lined up against myself, nobody else could win,” he said.

Who would lose?

“Nobody else could lose,” Jones said.

Jones acknowledged that it has been a challenging spring.

“It's mentally tough,” he said. “I know the offense pretty well. So for me to go to the defensive side, where things get a little more complicated concept-wise, it's been fun, learning the defense.”

On defense, Jones said he has worked only at cornerback this spring. Most other defensive backs have spent time in the nickel and/or dime packages at the “Star” or “Money” positions in addition to safety or cornerback.

“Even if I don't become a DB guy, it will help me as a receiver to know what to look for and how defenses are attacking our offense, so I have an understanding on that,” Jones said.

“It's going to be a plus regardless of whether I go to DB or stay at receiver. We haven't figured that out. We're not really even worried about that right now. We're just trying to get reps, because you never know what can happen.”

On offense, Jones is a slot receiver. He has a better understanding now of what he is going against on defense.

“Just how the Star, when they're in nickel, or man, and you've got a safety coming over, just how to attack whoever covers me, how he's covering me, inside, outside, different things you can pick up on as you play defense,” Jones said. “When you get back to offense, you see different things and you know how to attack them.”

Jones admits he was a little frazzled on defense in the first two or three practices.

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “You don’t feel lost, you just can’t play fast, because you don’t really know what you’re doing. Once you know what to do, once you pick up on things, everything is repetitious.

“That’s the importance of playing defense is repetitions. You’re probably not going to get it the first time or the second time, but the third time you should have it. That’s the thing. You don’t want to mess up three times in a row on it to have to get it, you want to catch on to it as quickly as possible and that’s what I try to do.”

Head coach Nick Saban often works directly with the cornerbacks at practice. What has that been like?